Folder construction

ABSTRACT

A folder has two folding stations for quarter folding a sheet or the like. The first folding station employs two independently operable clamping sections which secure the leading edge of the sheet in place against a stationary inclined support surface. The sections and support surface are located above a conveyer which carries the remainder of the sheet beneath such leading edge in the course of effecting a first transverse fold.

United States Patent Kamberg 1451 Aug. 1, 1972 [54] FOLDERCONSTRUCTION[72] Inventor: Eduard F. Kamberg, Deerfield, Ill.

[73] Assignee: Chicago Dryer Company, Chicago,

Ill.

Filed: April 24, 1970 Appl.No.: 31,539

US. Cl ..270/62, 270/68 Int. Cl ..B65h 45/16, B6Sh 45/12 Field of Search..270/62, 66, 61 R, 68 R, 69

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,361,424 H1968 Kamberg",..270/66 3,116,059 12/1963 Jensen ..270/68R 3,260,518- 7/1966 Kamberg..270/62 3,005,630 10/1961 Bergman et al. ..270/68 R 2,740,627 4/1956Woodward et al. ..270/68 R 3,133,732 5/1964 Beamishet al ..270/61 RPrimary Examiner--Lawrence Charles Att0rneyPendleton, Neuman, Williams &Anderson [57] ABSTRACT A folder has two folding stations for quarterfolding a sheet or the like. The first folding station employs twoindependently operable clamping sections which secure the leading edgeof the sheet in place against a stationary inclined support surface. Thesections and support surface are located above a conveyer which carriesthe remainder of the sheet beneath such leading edge in the course ofeffecting a first transverse fold.

2 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures m /1mm PATENTEDAUB 11972 sumanra 'f/rnoli n1 FOLDER CONSTRUCTION BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of theInvention This invention relates to folding machines adapted for use in'laundries or other institutions where a large volume of laundered sheetsor the like will be folded. The machines hereinafter disclosed also haveapplication in textile mills in the folding of newly manufacturedsheets. i

2. The Prior Art With the advent of the synthetic fiber-cotton fabrics,new problemswere introduced into both the small and large laundry.Whereas previously the all-cotton sheet could be readily ironed andmechanically conveyed to an automatic folder, with the arrival of thepolyestercotton fabrics the ironing step has in many instances beeneliminated. Such elimination is possible. if the washed sheets areremoved from a dryer promptly after termination of the drying cycle andsmoothed out to prevent the formation of deep-set wrinkles.

However, because of the rather limp character 'of a dried but unironedor unfinished sheet, difficulty has been experienced in attempting torapidly feed a washed but unironed sheet into an automatic folder. Intextile mills newly manufactured sheets may be readily folded intoquarters by means of the folder hereinafter described, with a minimum ofhand labor.

In accordance with this invention, a novel clamping station employingtwo independently operable clamping sections, which may comprise twomovable bars movable against a fixed inclined plate, is employed inconjunction with an underlying feed conveyor. An operator initiallyclamps one end of the sheet leading edge above the feed conveyor bymeans i of a first clamping bar. The remainder of the leading edge isthen stretched taut across the folder width and clamped in place. in thestretched condition by means of a second clamping bar. A feed conveyoris then energized and the remainder of the sheet moves beneath theclamped sheet leading edge on a feed conveyor. When the trailing edge ofthe sheet leaves a precisely located switch actuator, a circuit isestablished which releases the two clamping sections allowing the sheetleading edge to drop onto the sheet trailing edge, thereby effecting atransverse half fold.

The half-folded sheet then proceeds over a pair of counter-rotatingpinch rolls at which point the conveyor is stopped. Means such as an airbar is simultaneously actuatedto force the longitudinal central portionof the sheet into the bite of counter-rotating pinch rolls disposedbeneath an opening between continuous tapes of the feed conveyor. Thenow quarter-folded sheet is then conveyed to a receiving platformwhereat additional folding by hand may be carried out if desired.

SUMMARY It is an object of this invention to provide a folder adapted tofold unironed flatwork and newly manufactured sheets or the like with aminimum of wrinkle formation.

It is another object of this invention to provide a folder particularlyadapted for precisely quarter-folding synthetic fiber-cotton sheets orthe like which are wrinkle resistant.

It still is another object of this invention to provide a novel clampingassembly for use in a folding station which assures wrinkle eliminationin the leading edge of a new or laundered sheet thereby facilitatingfolding of the entire sheet with the substantially complete absence ofwrinkles.

It is another object of this invention to provide a sheet quarter folderadapted to fold in a substantially automatic manner, unironed, launderedsheets or the like of varying size without the need for complex andexpensive measuring devices.

It is another object of this invention to provide a folder for use withsheets which may employ a simple time delay for effecting desiredhalf-folds in such sheets prior to subsequent folding into desiredpackage sizes, as will hereinafter be explained in greater detail.

The above and other objects of this invention will become more apparentfrom the following description when read in the light of theaccompanying drawing and appended claims.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of afolder made in accordance with this invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side elevational view, partly broken away, ofthe apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view of apparatus componentsemployed in the two folding stations of an apparatus made in accordancewith this invention;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side elevational view of the left cornercomponents employed in the first folding station of the apparatusillustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. '5 is a perspective view illustrating in a schematic manner thevarious stages which a sheet or the like goes through in the course ofbeing folded by the apparatus of this invention; and

FIG. 6 is a wiring diagram illustrating the electrical circuitry whichmay be employed in a folder made in accordance with this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION or belts l8 rotatably driven by roller 20,see FIG. 2,

which is in turn driven by motor 22 through connecting belt or chain 24.The tapes l8 engage forward roller 26 at the feed end of apparatus 10,as well as the drive roller 20.

Positioned above roller 26, see FIG. 2, is a transverse inclined anvilplate 28 which extends across the entire width of the conveyor 16, as ismost readily seen from FIG. 1. Plate 28 in conjunction with a pivotallymounted clamping bar assembly 30 serves as a clamping station employedin the course of effecting a first transverse fold in a sheet or thelike which is fed into the apparatus 10.

In the normal course of use, the feed conveyor 16 is in the stoppedcondition, that is, the motor 22 is in the off condition. A cornerportion of the leading edge of a sheet or the like is then moved ontothe left-hand portion of inclined plate 28, as illustrated in FIG. 1,beneath clamp bar 32. It will be noted from FIG. 1 that there are threeclamp bar sections, 32, 34 and 36, which comprise the clamping assembly30 in conjunction with the stationary anvil plate 28. Each of theclamping bar sections 32, 34 and 36 is attached to a rotating actuatingrod, clamp segment 32 being connected to rod 33 by means of connectingstrap 38. Clamping bar 34 is connected to rotatable rod 40 by means ofconnecting straps 42, and right-hand clamping bar 36 is also connectedto the rotatable actuating rod 40 by means of strap 46. Clamping bars 34and 36 are thus seen to be rotatable simultaneously.

In the course of moving the sheet edge portion over the left-hand cornerportion of plate 28, actuator 50 (which protrudes through plate 28) ofswitch 52 will be urged into a downward position, see FIG. 4, and theswitch 52 will now complete an electrical circuit. A solenoid valve willbe energized to allow air to enter into cylinder 54 extending piston rod56, thereby rotating rod 33 in a counterclockwise direction so as tolower the clamp bar 32 into the clamping position illustrated in FIG. 4;connecting links 58 join piston rod 56 to the rotatable rod 33.

It will be noted that the rotatable rods 33 and 40 are independentlyactuatable. Air cylinder 54 rotates bar 33 as illustrated in FIG. 4, andair cylinder 54a rotates rod 40 which actuates clamping bars 34 and 36as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. Linkages 58a perform the same functionsin conjunction with the associated elements illustrated in FIG. 2 as dolinks 58 illustrated in FIG. 4.

After the left-hand leading edge portion of a sheet is clamped betweenthe clamp bar 32 and the underlying anvil plate 28, an operator willpull the remainder of the leading edge of a sheet taut, and stretch thesame across the width of the inclined surface of plate 28. The apparatusenables a single operator to clamp a sheet in position for folding, orif increased speed is desired, a team of two or more may be employed forclamping opposed edge portions of a sheet in place. As the remainder ofthe leading edge of the sheet is placed in position on the ramp surface,the right-hand edge portion of the leading edge of the sheet willactuate switch actuator 50a of switch 52a, causing the clamping bars 34and 36 to pivot downwardly into clamping engagement with the underlyingsurface of plate 28. Switch actuator 53 of switch 55 disposed next toswitch 52a (see FIG. 1) will be simultaneously actuated. The function ofswitch 55 will be explained hereinafter.

As is most clearly seen from FIG. 1, bar 36 enables an operator to placeher hands on either side thereof, and accordingly, depending upon thelength of the leading edge of the sheet, the right-hand edge mayterminate just beyond the end of the bar 34, or, in the event that thesheet is extra wide, the end portion of the sheet may be pulled tautbeneath bar 36. Thus, bar 36 enables sheets of extra width to beaccommodated in the illustrated apparatus 10.

After the second section or sections of the clamping bar assembly aremoved downwardly into clamping engagement with the stationary anvilsurface 28, the operator will actuate drive motor 22, see FIG. 2,thereby actuating the feed conveyor 16 to move the sheet portiondepending from the leading edge clamped in the clamping station 30inwardly into the machine on the continuous spaced belts 18.

A curved bar 63 (see FIG. 2) is placed in front of feed conveyor 16whereby a sheet fed into apparatus 10 is automatically spread out andthe wrinkles removed as the sheet moves inwardly. FIG. 5 indicates thecurved configuration assumed by the depending portion of sheet S1hanging from the bar disposed in front of the feed conveyor A vibrator49 connected to said bar may be employed to assist wrinkle removal as asheet is fed into apparatus 10.

In advance of clamping station 30 is a switch 60 having an actuator 62projecting from a switch 60 interposed between two of the continuoustapes 18 comprising a portion of the feed conveyor 16 (see FIG. 2).Actuator 62 is preferably disposed in the approximate center of the feedconveyor as viewed in FIG. 1. It is the function of the switch 60 toestablish a circuit which releases the clamp bars 32, 34 and 36 afterthe trailing edge of the sheet which is being carried into the interiorof the apparatus 10 leaves contact with the switch actuator 62. Therelease circuit de-energizes the circuits controlling the solenoidswhich in turn control the air passage into the air cylinders 54 and 54a.As the clamp bars are raised, the leading edge of the sheet will beallowed to drop onto the trailing edge of the sheet which is thenpassing therebeneath.

The half-folded sheet will continue to move inwardly on the feedconveyor 16 until the leading bight edge of the sheet contacts switchactuator 64 of switch 66 which is mounted on an air bar 68 as is mostclearly seen in FIG. 2. The air bar 68 is disposed over substantiallythe central longitudinal axis of the half-folded sheet. On contactingthe switch actuator 64, the drive motor 22 of the feed conveyor 16stops, allowing the sheet to come to a stop; simultaneously or shortlythereafter a valve is opened which passes compress air into the air bar68. The air bar discharges air downwardly forcing the centrallongitudinal axis of the half-folded sheet between the bite ofcounter-rotating pinch rolls 70 as is most clearly seen in FIG. 3 of thedrawing.

The sheet is now quarter folded and drops onto discharge conveyor 76which is driven by motor 72 through drive belt 74, which also serves todrive the pinch rolls 70 in counter-rotating directions. The dischargeconveyor 76 conveys the now quarter-folded sheet to a table 78 disposedon the exterior of the apparatus 10, as is most clearly seen in FIG. 1of the drawing.

The various stages through which a sheet progresses in apparatus 10 isillustrated in FIG. 5 wherein a sheet in form S1 has a leading edgethereof clamped beneath the illustrated clamp bar assembly allowing theremainder of the sheet to move therebeneath on the feed conveyor 16.Sheet in the form of the sheet S2 has been half folded and is nowpositioned above the counter-rotating pinch rolls 70 prior to beingfolded in half with the assistance of an air discharge emitted from theair bar 68. The sheet in form S3 illustrates the sheet following quarterfolding by means of the counterrotating pinch rolls 70 and depicts thesheet in the form deposited onto the discharge conveyor 76.

For a clearer understanding of the working relationship between thevarious elements of the illustrated apparatus 10, reference will now bemade to schematic wiring diagram of FIG. 6

The operator upon grasping one corner portion of a sheet will closeswitch 52 as the sheet moves actuator 50 downwardly in the mannerillustrated in FIG. 4. It will be noted from FIG. 6 that closing of theswitch 52 will enable-current to pass through line 61, relay 80 by meansof normally closed contact 79, line 63, into relay 82 and through thelatter relay by means of normally closed contact 81, line 65 and intosolenoid 84 controlling the air passage into the air cylinder 54illustrated in FIG. 4. Upon energization of the solenoid 84, piston rod56 projecting from air cylinder 54 is extended, moving bar 32 into theclamping position illustrated in FIG. 4.

After a corner portion is clamped in place on stationary ramp surface 28following closing of switch 52, the remainder of the sheet leading edgeis grasped by the operator and placed beneath the clamp bar segment 34,and if the sheet is wide enough, beneath the clamp bar segment 36.Switch actuator 50a of switch 52a is thereby moved into the positionwhich closes a circuit energizing solenoid 88. Solenoid 88 controls theair movement within cylinder 54a more'clearly seen in FIG. 2 which inturn controls the pivotal movement of the clamp bar segments 34 and 36.Upon the closing of switch 52a,'current passes to solenoid 88 afterentering relay 82 through line 67, whereafter the current passes throughnormally-closed contact 69 and into the solenoid 88 through line 71.

In order to facilitate retraction of the clamping bars 32, 34 and 36 ofthe illustrated apparatus 10, auxiliary switch 55 having a movableswitch actuator 53 is employed. This switch is disposed in side-by-siderelationship with switch 52 as indicated in FIG. 1 and previously notedabove. It will be seen from FIG. 6 that upon moving the switch actuator53, as the operator positions the sheet into place beneath the longclamp bar segment 34, current will pass by means of line 98 into relay80, energizing coil 100 therein as a result of which normally closedcontact 79 will be opened. However, current passage to solenoid 84controlling the air within air cylinder 54 is maintained by means ofcurrent passing into relay 80 through the closed switch 60 by means ofline 102. Switch 60 is closed as the sheet is clamped in place and fedon conveyor 16. Upon energization of coil 100 of relay 80, current maypass from relay 80 through line 63 into relay 82 through closed contact81 and through line 65 into the solenoid 84.

Assuming that the trailing edge of sheet being folded within theapparatus has left contact with the switch actuator 62 of switch 60,switch actuator 62 will revert to its normal position illustrated inFIG. 6 allowing current to pass by means of line 108 into relay 92energizing coil 110 therein; relay 92 includes a variable capacitor 112which may readily be hand set. After expiration of a desired timeinterval, current will bridge the capacitor 112 and enter into line 94and energize coil 114 of relay 82. Energization of the latter coil willopen normally closed contacts 81 and 69 thereby terminating currentpassage to solenoids 84 and 88 through lines 65 and 71, respectively.

The time delay relay 92 is a feature which is preferably employed inthose folders which are'adapted to be utilized in mills wherein newsheets are made and packaged for sale in retail stores and the like.Sheets of varying size are commonly used in the home, and

sheets sold in the average retail store are available in a variety ofsizes. Normally such sheets are folded and placed in a package havingthe same peripheral dimensions to facilitate shipping and storagedespite the size of the sheet contained therein. By employing a timedelay such as time delay 92 of FIG. 6, the precise instant at which theleading edge of a sheet which is being half folded is released by theclamping bar segments, 32, 34 and 36 may be accurately controlled.

Thus in the case of exceedingly large sheets it may be desired not toform a precise half fold at the first folding station of apparatus 10.It may be desired to drop the leading edge beyond the terminal edge sothat in subsequent folding operations an attending hand folder mayutilize the amount of overlap for purposes of forming a desired finishedperipheral size. Time delay 92 therefore enables a degree of flexiblityto be employed in the apparatus 10 whereby the apparatus may beadaptable for folding sheets of varying sizes to provide the desiredamount of overlap in the course of folding a first half fold. Each sheetsize' will have a specific time delay whichmay be readily set at 112 inthe time delay 92. Where flexibility in the first half fold is notdesired capacitor 112 may be eliminated to provide immediate clamp barrelease.

It is seen therefore from the foregoing description that a novel foldingapparatus has been provided which is readily adapted for foldinglaundered sheets, particularly sheets made from synthetic fiber andcotton. Such materials are relatively wrinkle resistant, and followingwashing and drying steps, need not be ironed if removed from the dryerprior to formation of deep-set wrinkles. The use of the two-partclamping station 30 employed in the illustrated apparatus 10 will enablea leading edge portion of such a laundered sheet to be stretched andmounted in place by one or more attendants. A desired half fold is thenformed prior to the subsequent formation of cross fold whereby theoriginal sheet is folded in quarters. The quarter folded sheet is thendischarged onto a table 78 most clearly seen in FIG. 1, whereafter anattendant may readily fold such sheet into a desired size andconfiguration.

As above point out, the apparatus 10 has particular application for usein mills wherein sheets of the type above described are manufactured.Whereas previously it had been a laborious time-consuming operationrequiring the use of a large quantity of manual labor, by employing theapparatus 10, the most difficult folds of a sheet may be readilyaccomplished whereafter a single individual may readily form thequarter-folded sheet into a desired peripheral configuration ready forpackaging. The use of the time delay relay above described will enablethe initial half fold to be desirable formed in conformance with thesize of the sheet so that in the course of subsequent hand folding adesired sheet size may be arrived at which is suitable for packaging andretailing.

What is claimed is:

1. In a laundry apparatus for processing sheets or the like, thecombination comprising an input conveyor extending from the exterior ofsaid apparatus into the interior thereof adapted to move a sheet or thelike from the apparatus exterior into its interior; support meansdisposed across substantially the entire width of said apparatus, andabove and at substantially right angles to the path of travel of saidinput conveyor; clamping means having at least two independentlyoperable sections disposed in parallel adjacent relation with saidsupport means; each of said sections being movable into tight clampingengagement and into spaced relation with said support means; means foractuating each of said independently operable sections of said clampingmeans upon manually placing spaced leading edge portions of a sheet orthe like in predetermined positions on said support means; one of saidclamping means independently operable sections being disposed adjacentone lateral end of said apparatus over one end portion of said supportmeans and being of such reduced size as to engage only a small cornerportion of the leading edge of a sheet or the like; the entire leadingedge of a sheet or the like being supported on said support means whenengaging said independently operable sections; means for actuating saidinput conveyer after the leading edge of a sheet or the like has beenclamped to said support means by said clamping means whereby the portionof a sheet or the like contiguous with such a clamped leading edge maybe moved inwardly by said input conveyer beneath said support means;means for moving said clamping means into spaced relation with saidsupport means when the trailing edge of such sheet or the likeapproaches said support means whereby the leading edge of such sheetfalls upon such sheet trailing edge and effects a half fold in saidsheet; the actuating means for said clamping means comprising spacedswitch actuators disposed adjacent spaced portions of said support meanswhich define said predetermined positions. I

2. The apparatus of claim 1 in combination with a regulatable time delaymeans operatively connected to the means for moving the clamping meansinto spaced relation with said support means whereby a pre-set timeperiod may expire after said sheet terminal edge portion ispredeterminately located relative to said clamping sections prior tomovement of said clamping sections away from said support means.

1. In a laundry apparatus for processing sheets or the like, the combination comprising an input conveyor extending from the exterior of said apparatus into the interior thereof adapted to move a sheet or the like from the apparatus exterior into its interior; support means disposed across substantially the entire width of said apparatus, and above and at substantially right angles to the path of travel of said input conveyor; clamping means having at least two independently operable sections disposed in parallel adjacent relation with said support means; each of said sections being movable into tight clamping engagement and into spaced relation with said support means; means for actuating each of said independently operable sections of said clamping means upon manually placing spaced leading edge portions of a sheet or the like in predetermined positions on said support means; one of said clamping means independently operable sections being disposed adjacent one lateral end of said apparatus over one end portion of said support means and being of such reduced size as to engage only a small corner portion of the leading edge of a sheet or the like; the entire leading edge of a sheet or the like being supported on said support means when engaging said independently operable sections; means for actuating said input conveyer after the leading edge of a sheet or the like has been clamped to said support means by said clamping means whereby the portion of a sheet or the like contiguous with such a clamped leading edge may be moved inwardly by said input conveyer beneath said support means; means for moving said clamping means into spaced relation with said support means when the trailing edge of such sheet or the like approaches said support means whereby the leading edge of such sheet falls upon such sheet trailing edge and effects a half fold in said sheet; the actuating means for said clamping means comprising spaced switch actuators disposed adjacent spaced portions of said support means which define said predetermined positions.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1 in combination with a regulatable time delay means operatively connected to the means for moving the clamping means into spaced relation with said support means whereby a pre-set time period may expire after said sheet terminal edge portion is predeterminately located relative to said clamping sections prior to movement of said clamping sections away from said support means. 